I never realized what joy a simple text message could bring to a person’s life. Was it a text from someone saying “I love you?” Or maybe it was someone telling me they missed me? Or even that they were thinking about me? Possibly that my food was ready? All signs point to nope. So what was so exciting in my mundane week?

I got the confirmation email that my version of Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire was ready for pick up on Friday.

I know, why the hell should a twenty year old college student care so much about a stupid game? I probably shouldn’t care as much as I do, especially with Finals coming up but there was just something that just gave me a boost to get through the rest of my day with that text. Cause simply, I’ve been waiting for this game for years.

I remember being so excited when I got my original Gen 3 game back in 2003. It was one of the first Pokemon games that I got through completely without the help of my sisters. It was such a huge accomplishment for 9 year old me. Yeah, I would get yelled at that I would be staying up late playing that silly game on my Game Boy Advance or that I should be doing anything else, but that never stopped me. Hell, that still doesn’t stop me.

That may have been a lifetime ago but for almost my entire life, Pokemon has always remained consistent. Whether it be through the card game I learned from my sisters or playing Red on the fossil that was the ORIGINAL Game Boy, Pokemon has always been there. I was probably about 2 or 3 by the time I first started playing but those games always gave me something to do. I learned so much through these games it’s absurd.

I can handle money pretty decently, I can read well at faster speeds, I can understand maintaining a good balance of power and strategy, I can be competitive but understanding in loss, I can be creative, but most of all, I can think on my own. All of these things, I owe to my loyalty to a video game.

People can argue all they want about video games being hazardous to children as they grow. Sometimes, that argument is valid, but personally, I can’t agree with that. If children are being exposed to video games that have them thinking the right way, they can learn so much more that will help them for the long run. I value Pokemon so much because once I learned how to navigate the games, I did it all on my own. I always worked my hardest to earn everything. Yes, I would use an occasional walk-through but in the end, it always came down to how well I could use my own head to get the victories and accomplishments in the games. I never used cheat codes or focused heavily on Stats within the game because I approached it like you only get this thing and you had to try your hardest to make it amazing.

I slaved an ungodly amount of hours into my games. I’ve lost games to time and just human error but I know I worked every game with 110% of my focus because it was just as important as any test I took in school. Pokemon was a way for me to connect with people and show my worth. I may not have been the most talented but you can be sure that I love the world of Pokemon with everything I got.

Yeah, it’s just a game, no one should really care. But in the end, I spent about 17 years of my life invested in a game that helped me become the individual I am today. I have absolutely no regrets as I have every intention to get right back to playing as soon as I’m done with this.